Biography of the Shaykh

The work of Shaykh Dr Abdalqadir as-Sufi

Just under half a century ago a young, successful Scottish writer Ian Dallas entered Islam in 1967 at the Qarawyn Mosque of Fez witnessed by the Imam Khatib of the Qarawyn Shaykh Abdalkrim Daudi and Alal Al-Fasi the renowned nationalist leader. Shortly afterwards while he was seeking a Sufic guide, Shaykh Muhammad ibn al-Habib turned back on his tracks and thus he found the seeker. After a series of visits to the Shaykh’s Zawiyya in Meknes, the Shaykh invested his Murid with the title of As-Sufi.

Ian Dallas now Abdalqadir As-Sufi had begun a lifetime of Da’wa and intellectual study to revive the Deen which was being crushed both by the Arabs’ headlong plunge into Socialism on the one hand and by the disastrous attempt of the Muslim modernists to westernise the deen on the other.

Right at the beginning of his intense active life as a Da’ee Abdalqadir As-Sufi realised that bringing solitary individuals into Islam would reduce the Deen to a personal or inward religion that could not create an Islamic Jama’at. He began with a small group of Scots and English, among them the Wali of Allah, Hajj Abdalaziz Redpath, may Allah be pleased with him, and the now highly respected ‘Ulema and translators, Hajj Abdalhhaqq Bewley and his wife Hajia Aisha At-Tarjumana Bewley.

Turning their backs on an easeful life in society the group moved into a ruined house in central London – a squat. In the shortest time new Muslims had taken over of most of the empty houses in the street, decorated them and opened up a tailor’s, a bakery, a health shop, a book shop and a clinic. The transformed street had become a Muslim community. It was visited by Dr. Kawthar Niazi, Pakistan’s Minister of Islamic Affairs, and by Shaykh Abdalhalim Mahmud, Shaykh al Azhar who led the Dhu’hr prayer of the community.

From the beginning our Shaykh had wanted to create a Muslim village in England. To this end, he visited King Khalid in Riyadh. The King had expressed enthusiasm for the project and promised to undertake the task. However, the Wahhabis at the court forbade the king from keeping his promise.

Nevertheless it was one of the leaders in Saudiarabia, Shaykh Abdallah Ali al-Mahmud, who befriended Hajj Abdalqadir and defended him against his modernist and Wahhabi detractors. He announced: “Hajj Abdalqadir, you are going to be the leader of all the Muslims in Europe. All that matters is that your ‘Aqida must be correct. Then you will have success.” As a result of this meeting Hajj Abdalqadir embarked on a research which resulted in an important production of key works of Islamic Fiqh. As a result in the shortest time his Murids began to produce superb translations of key works that had never appeared before in English.

Following the sober guidance of Shaykh Abdallah, Shaykh Abdal Qadir as Sufi decided to hold to the primal model of Islamic teaching- the truly Salafi school of the ‘Amal of the people of Madinah, whose greatest explicator was Imam Malik, may Allah be pleased with him – the very teaching that ibn Taymiyya set over all the Schools.

As a result the following works have appeared in English:

‘The Muwatta’ of Imam Malik (with an ‘Ijaza from the London Central Mosque) translated by Hajjia Aisha Bewley.

‘Defence Against Disaster’ by Qadi Abu Bakr ibn Arabi of Granada, on the correct position on the Fitnat al-Kubra with extensive commentary. Translated by Hajjia Aisha Bewley.

During this period Hajj Abdalqadir was ordered by the Alawiyya Shaykh Muhammad al-Fayturi to visit him in Benghazi, Libya. In obedience, he left for Libya where Shaykh al Fayturi put him in Khalwa. He said, “I say to you what Shaykh al-Alawi told me on putting me into seclusion- “you are already cooked, this will not take long, Insha’Allah””. After three nights the Shaykh released him – the same time as Shaykh al-Fayturi had spent under the guidance of Shaykh al-Alawi. Shaykh al-Fayturi declared, “Now- no hand is over your hand.” When his Fuqara later criticised Hajj Abdalqadir as-Sufi for reverting to the Wird of the Habibiyya, Shaykh al-Fayturi announced: “He is Arif-Bi’llah. Leave him be.”

Some time after this he declared his authority as Shaykh of the Habibiyya-Allawiyya-Darqawi Tariqa. This was confirmed by Sidi Muhammad ibn Ali the Wali of Bahlil, Moulay Hassan al-Majdhoub, and the Wali of Allah, Sidi Muhammad Bel-Kurshi of Turuq, the now over 100 year old Sufic companion of Shaykh Muhammad ibn al-Habib.

The Da’wa over these years, without any support from governments, continued with growing success.

Thousands have entered Islam as a result of this activity – uncounted hundreds. Communities have been established in:

England
Scotland
Ireland
Germany
Spain
Italy
Mexico
South Africa
And only this year in Russia.

The leader of the communities is a distinguished German Lawyer, also Editor of the nationally renowned “Islamischa Zeitung.” Rais Abu Bakr Rieger. His communities work towards the restoration of the fallen pillar of Zakat and have brought back the necessary Sunna of the gold Dinar and silver Dirham essential to a TAKEN Zakat.

Further, they have minted Islamic currency in Spain, South Africa, and Malaysia.

Umar ‘Ibrahim Vadillo is known to the communities as ‘Umar Pasha’ because of his leadership in demonstrating and structuring the way to submit modern finance to the Halal and successful methods of Madinan practice. He is the Author of “The Esoteric Deviation in Islam”, the definitive text that puts behind us all the outdated ‘Modernism’ that has shipwrecked on the rocks of terrorism.

In 2001 the Science University of Penang, Malaysia awarded Shaykh Abdal Qadir as sufi an Honorary Doctorate of Literature for his life’s work.

Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi founded:

The Ihsan Mosque of Norwich- gifted by Shaykh Azzam of Madinah.

The Great Mosque of Granada, Spain, gifted by H.H. Shaykh Sultan al-Qasimi.

The Shaykh has held 10 Conferences on Islamic Fiqh. One Conference was hosted by Shaykh Zayd of Abu Dhabi. Another, in turn, was hosted by the Sultan al-‘Ulama of Madinan Fiqh, Shaykh Shadhili an-Nayfar, may Allah be pleased with him. The evil Bourguiba banned it from being held at the Qarawiyyin of Tunis and in defiance Shaykh an-Nayfar held it in a hired cinema!

As the initiator of new programmes for a renewed Islam, purified of the deviations that led to ‘terrorism’ and suicide-bombing, our Shaykh points to a restoration of a Fiqh, ‘Aqida, and Tasawwuf on pure Madinan lines.

To this end he has created a post-madrasah concept of education for Muslims, to equip them for leadership in the modern world and ready to build on the ruins of present day anarchy – this has been activated in the innovative curriculum of Dallas College which he founded in Cape Town. Its Vice-Chancellor is Hajj Abdalbasir Ojembarena, formerly Professor at Bilboa University in Spain. The college provides separate lectures on three aspects of politics. There are three languages taught: Arabic, Turkish, Urdu. Rhetoric using Shakespeare’s political and historical plays and, of course, Information Technology is also taught. Students are both from the townships and abroad.

It is intended to re-create the module in the Soweto Mosque, and in Edinburgh, Scotland, Insha’Allah. A Secondary School for Muslim pupils is now in the planning stage. The Shaykh’s educational system represents a renewal of intellectual life for Muslim youths in the modern world that marks an end to the outmoded madrasah system of the last century.